Unit: 1; Lesson: 4; Bangladeshi Cuisine

January 9, 2026 Md. Rokon Uddin (Rumon)

Bangladeshi cuisine is rich and varied with the use of many spices. We have delicious and appetizing food, snacks, and sweets. Boiled rice is our staple food. It is served with a variety of vegetables, curry, lentil soups, fish and meat. Fish is the main source of protein. Fishes are now cultivated in ponds. Also we have fresh-water fishes in the lakes and rivers. More than 40 types of fishes are common, Some of them are carp, rui, katla, magur (catfish), chingri (prawn or shrimp), Shutki or dried fishes are popular. Hilsha is very popular among the people of Bangladesh.
Panta-Ilish is a traditional platter of Panta Bhat. It is steamed rice soaked in water and served with fried hilsha slice, often together with dried fish, pickles, lentil soup, green chilies and onion. It is a popular dish on the Pohela Boishakh. The people of Bangladesh are very fond of sweets. Almost all Bangladeshi women prepare some traditional sweets. ‘Pitha’ a type of sweets made from rice, flour, sugar syrup, molasses and sometimes milk, is a traditional food loved by the entire population. During winter Pitha Utsab, meaning pitha festival is organized by different groups of people, weets are distributed among close relatives when there is good news like births, weddings, promotions etc. Sweets of Bangladesh are mostly milk based. The common ones are roshgulla, sandesh, rasamalai, gulap jamun, kaljamun and chom-chom. There are hundreds of different varieties of sweet preparations. Sweets are therefore an important part of the day to day life of Bangladeshi people.

বাংলা অর্থ (Bengali Meaning):

বাংলাদেশি খাবার অত্যন্ত সমৃদ্ধ ও বৈচিত্র্যময়, যেখানে নানা ধরনের মসলা ব্যবহৃত হয়। আমাদের খাবার, নাস্তা ও মিষ্টান্ন খুবই সুস্বাদু ও রুচিকর। ভাত আমাদের প্রধান খাদ্য। এটি নানা ধরনের সবজি, তরকারি, ডাল, মাছ ও মাংসের সঙ্গে পরিবেশন করা হয়। মাছ আমাদের প্রধান প্রোটিনের উৎস। বর্তমানে পুকুরে মাছ চাষ করা হয়। এছাড়াও আমাদের হ্রদ ও নদীতে প্রচুর মিঠাপানির মাছ পাওয়া যায়। চল্লিশেরও বেশি প্রকারের মাছ সাধারণভাবে খাওয়া হয়। এর মধ্যে কার্প, রুই, কাতলা, মাগুর (ক্যাটফিশ), চিংড়ি (পোনা বা চিংড়ি) উল্লেখযোগ্য। শুঁটকি বা শুকনো মাছও খুব জনপ্রিয়। ইলিশ বাংলাদেশের মানুষের কাছে অত্যন্ত জনপ্রিয় মাছ।

পান্তা-ইলিশ একটি ঐতিহ্যবাহী খাবার। পান্তা ভাত হলো সেদ্ধ ভাত, যা পানিতে ভিজিয়ে রাখা হয় এবং এর সঙ্গে ভাজা ইলিশের টুকরা পরিবেশন করা হয়। অনেক সময় এর সঙ্গে শুঁটকি, আচার, ডাল, কাঁচা মরিচ ও পেঁয়াজও থাকে। পহেলা বৈশাখে এটি একটি খুব জনপ্রিয় খাবার।

বাংলাদেশের মানুষ মিষ্টি খুব পছন্দ করে। প্রায় সব বাংলাদেশি নারীই কিছু না কিছু ঐতিহ্যবাহী মিষ্টান্ন তৈরি করেন। ‘পিঠা’ হলো এক ধরনের মিষ্টান্ন, যা চালের গুঁড়া, ময়দা, চিনির সিরা, গুড় এবং কখনো কখনো দুধ দিয়ে তৈরি করা হয়। এটি সারা দেশের মানুষের প্রিয় ঐতিহ্যবাহী খাবার। শীতকালে বিভিন্ন স্থানে পিঠা উৎসবের আয়োজন করা হয়। জন্ম, বিয়ে, পদোন্নতির মতো সুখবরের সময় আত্মীয়স্বজনের মধ্যে মিষ্টি বিতরণ করা হয়।

বাংলাদেশের মিষ্টান্নগুলো মূলত দুধভিত্তিক। এর মধ্যে রসগোল্লা, সন্দেশ, রসমালাই, গোলাপ জামুন, কালোজাম ও চমচম খুবই পরিচিত। শত শত রকমের মিষ্টান্ন রয়েছে। তাই মিষ্টি বাংলাদেশের মানুষের দৈনন্দিন জীবনের একটি গুরুত্বপূর্ণ অংশ।

50 Vocabulary List

No.	Word	Bengali Meaning	Synonym	Antonym	Part of Speech
1	Rich	সমৃদ্ধ	wealthy	poor	Adjective
2	Varied	বৈচিত্র্যময়	diverse	similar	Adjective
3	Spices	মসলা	seasoning	plainness	Noun
4	Delicious	সুস্বাদু	tasty	tasteless	Adjective
5	Appetizing	রুচিকর	tempting	unappealing	Adjective
6	Staple	প্রধান	basic	secondary	Adjective
7	Variety	বৈচিত্র্য	range	uniformity	Noun
8	Vegetables	শাকসবজি	greens	meat	Noun
9	Curry	তরকারি	stew	—	Noun
10	Lentil	ডাল	pulse	—	Noun
11	Source	উৎস	origin	result	Noun
12	Protein	প্রোটিন	nutrient	—	Noun
13	Cultivated	চাষকৃত	farmed	wild	Adjective
14	Ponds	পুকুর	pools	rivers	Noun
15	Fresh-water	মিঠাপানির	inland	salty	Adjective
16	Common	সাধারণ	usual	rare	Adjective
17	Popular	জনপ্রিয়	famous	unpopular	Adjective
18	Traditional	ঐতিহ্যবাহী	cultural	modern	Adjective
19	Platter	খাবারের থালা	plate	—	Noun
20	Steamed	ভাপানো	boiled	fried	Adjective
21	Soaked	ভেজানো	dipped	dried	Adjective
22	Served	পরিবেশিত	offered	withheld	Verb
23	Fried	ভাজা	cooked	raw	Adjective
24	Pickles	আচার	chutney	—	Noun
25	Festival	উৎসব	celebration	mourning	Noun
26	Fond	অনুরাগী	loving	hateful	Adjective
27	Prepare	প্রস্তুত করা	make	destroy	Verb
28	Traditional	ঐতিহ্যগত	customary	modern	Adjective
29	Entire	সম্পূর্ণ	whole	partial	Adjective
30	Population	জনসংখ্যা	people	minority	Noun
31	Organized	আয়োজিত	arranged	disordered	Adjective
32	Distributed	বিতরণ করা	shared	collected	Verb
33	Relatives	আত্মীয়স্বজন	kin	strangers	Noun
34	Occasion	উপলক্ষ	event	routine	Noun
35	Promotion	পদোন্নতি	advancement	demotion	Noun
36	Mostly	অধিকাংশই	mainly	rarely	Adverb
37	Based	ভিত্তিক	founded	unrelated	Adjective
38	Common	পরিচিত	familiar	uncommon	Adjective
39	Varieties	প্রকারভেদ	types	sameness	Noun
40	Preparation	প্রস্তুতি	making	neglect	Noun
41	Important	গুরুত্বপূর্ণ	significant	trivial	Adjective
42	Day-to-day	দৈনন্দিন	daily	occasional	Adjective
43	Culture	সংস্কৃতি	tradition	ignorance	Noun
44	Platter	খাবারের পরিবেশন	tray	—	Noun
45	Ingredient	উপাদান	component	whole	Noun
46	Milk-based	দুধভিত্তিক	dairy	non-dairy	Adjective
47	Dried	শুকনো	dehydrated	fresh	Adjective
48	Source	উৎস	cause	effect	Noun
49	Loved	প্রিয়	adored	hated	Adjective
50	Entirely	সম্পূর্ণভাবে	fully	partly	Adverb

50 MCQ Questions

Based on the Text (1–20)

Bangladeshi cuisine is rich and varied because of the use of—
A. Fruits
B. Spices
C. Oil
D. Sugar
What is the staple food of Bangladesh?
A. Bread
B. Rice
C. Fish
D. Meat
Boiled rice is usually served with—
A. Fruits and milk
B. Vegetables and curry
C. Cakes and sweets
D. Bread and butter
Fish is the main source of—
A. Energy
B. Fat
C. Protein
D. Vitamins
Where are fishes now cultivated?
A. Rivers
B. Seas
C. Ponds
D. Oceans
Fresh-water fishes are found in—
A. Seas and oceans
B. Lakes and rivers
C. Canals and seas
D. Ponds and seas
Which fish is very popular in Bangladesh?
A. Tuna
B. Salmon
C. Hilsha
D. Sardine
Shutki means—
A. Fresh fish
B. Fried fish
C. Dried fish
D. Raw fish
Panta Bhat is—
A. Fried rice
B. Steamed rice
C. Rice soaked in water
D. Sticky rice
Panta-Ilish is popular on—
A. Eid
B. Pohela Boishakh
C. Independence Day
D. Victory Day
Panta-Ilish is served with—
A. Bread
B. Fried hilsha
C. Sweetmeat
D. Milk
Bangladeshi people are very fond of—
A. Fast food
B. Fruits
C. Sweets
D. Drinks
Who usually prepare traditional sweets?
A. Men
B. Children
C. Women
D. Farmers
Pitha is mainly made from—
A. Wheat and oil
B. Rice and flour
C. Meat and fish
D. Milk only
Pitha Utsab is organized during—
A. Summer
B. Rainy season
C. Winter
D. Autumn
Sweets are distributed on occasions like—
A. Funerals
B. Exams
C. Births and weddings
D. Sports
Most Bangladeshi sweets are—
A. Fruit based
B. Milk based
C. Rice based
D. Oil based
Which one is a Bangladeshi sweet?
A. Pizza
B. Burger
C. Roshgulla
D. Sandwich
There are hundreds of varieties of—
A. Rice
B. Curry
C. Fish
D. Sweets
Sweets are an important part of—
A. Agriculture
B. Education
C. Daily life
D. Business

Synonym-based MCQs (21–30)

The synonym of delicious is—
A. Bitter
B. Tasty
C. Sour
D. Dry
The synonym of varied is—
A. Same
B. Different
C. Diverse
D. Plain
The synonym of popular is—
A. Unknown
B. Famous
C. Rare
D. Hidden
The synonym of traditional is—
A. Modern
B. Old-fashioned
C. Cultural
D. New
The synonym of fond is—
A. Loving
B. Angry
C. Careless
D. Rude
The synonym of entire is—
A. Partial
B. Whole
C. Broken
D. Few
The synonym of important is—
A. Minor
B. Trivial
C. Significant
D. Small
The synonym of common is—
A. Rare
B. Unusual
C. Familiar
D. Strange
The synonym of prepare is—
A. Destroy
B. Make
C. Refuse
D. Forget
The synonym of distributed is—
A. Collected
B. Shared
C. Hidden
D. Stored

Antonym-based MCQs (31–40)

The antonym of rich is—
A. Wealthy
B. Strong
C. Poor
D. Healthy
The antonym of fresh is—
A. New
B. Dried
C. Clean
D. Soft
The antonym of popular is—
A. Famous
B. Common
C. Unpopular
D. Known
The antonym of modern is—
A. New
B. Advanced
C. Traditional
D. Recent
The antonym of whole is—
A. Entire
B. Complete
C. Partial
D. Full
The antonym of important is—
A. Valuable
B. Necessary
C. Trivial
D. Useful
The antonym of fond is—
A. Loving
B. Hateful
C. Caring
D. Gentle
The antonym of mostly is—
A. Mainly
B. Usually
C. Rarely
D. Often
The antonym of organized is—
A. Planned
B. Arranged
C. Disordered
D. Managed
The antonym of common is—
A. Familiar
B. Regular
C. Rare
D. Usual

Parts of Speech (41–50)

The word “rice” is a—
A. Verb
B. Adjective
C. Noun
D. Adverb
The word “delicious” is a—
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Adverb
The word “prepare” is a—
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Preposition
The word “fond” is a—
A. Verb
B. Noun
C. Adjective
D. Conjunction
The word “mostly” is a—
A. Adjective
B. Adverb
C. Verb
D. Noun
The word “festival” is a—
A. Verb
B. Adjective
C. Noun
D. Pronoun
The word “served” is a—
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Adverb
The word “traditional” is a—
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Adverb
The word “distributed” is a—
A. Verb
B. Noun
C. Adjective
D. Preposition
The word “daily” is a—
A. Noun
B. Verb
C. Adjective
D. Conjunction

Answer: 1.B 2.B 3.B 4.C 5.C 6.B 7.C 8.C 9.C 10.B 11.B 12.C 13.C 14.B 15.C 16.C 17.B 18.C 19.D 20.C 21.B 22.C 23.B 24.C 25.A 26.B 27.C 28.C 29.B 30.B 31.C 32.B 33.C 34.C 35.C 36.C 37.B 38.C 39.C 40.C 41.C 42.C 43.B 44.C 45.B 46.C 47.B 48.C 49.A 50.C

2. Answer the following questions.

1. Describe the main features of Bangladeshi cuisine.

Answer:
Bangladeshi cuisine is rich and varied. It uses many kinds of spices that make the food delicious and appetizing. Rice is the staple food and it is eaten with vegetables, curry, lentils, fish and meat. Fish plays a very important role in Bangladeshi food culture. Sweets and traditional dishes are also an important part of this cuisine.

2. Why is rice called the staple food of Bangladesh?

Answer:
Rice is called the staple food of Bangladesh because it is eaten every day by most people. Boiled rice is usually served with vegetables, curry, lentil soup, fish and meat. It forms the main part of a regular Bangladeshi meal.

3. Explain the importance of fish in Bangladeshi food habits.

Answer:
Fish is the main source of protein for Bangladeshi people. It is cultivated in ponds and also found in rivers and lakes. There are more than forty common varieties of fish in Bangladesh. Popular fishes include rui, katla, magur, chingri and hilsha, which is especially loved by the people.

4. What is Panta-Ilish? When is it eaten?

Answer:
Panta-Ilish is a traditional Bangladeshi dish. Panta bhat is steamed rice soaked in water and it is served with fried hilsha fish. Sometimes it is eaten with dried fish, pickles, lentil soup, green chilies and onion. It is especially popular on the occasion of Pohela Boishakh.

5. Write about fresh-water fishes of Bangladesh.

Answer:
Bangladesh has many fresh-water fishes that are found in rivers, lakes and ponds. Nowadays fishes are also cultivated in ponds. More than forty types of fishes are commonly eaten. Some well-known fresh-water fishes are carp, rui, katla, magur and chingri.

6. Why are sweets important in Bangladeshi culture?

Answer:
Sweets are very important in Bangladeshi culture because people are very fond of them. Sweets are distributed on happy occasions such as births, weddings and promotions. They are a part of everyday life as well as celebrations.

7. What is Pitha? When is it mainly prepared?

Answer:
Pitha is a traditional sweet food of Bangladesh. It is made from rice flour, flour, sugar syrup, molasses and sometimes milk. Pitha is mainly prepared during the winter season. Different groups arrange Pitha Utsab or pitha festivals in winter.

8. Describe the role of Bangladeshi women in preparing traditional foods.

Answer:
Bangladeshi women play an important role in preparing traditional foods. Almost all women prepare some kinds of traditional sweets at home. They make pitha and various milk-based sweets, especially during festivals and family occasions.

9. Name some popular Bangladeshi sweets.

Answer:
Some popular Bangladeshi sweets are roshgulla, sandesh, rasamalai, gulap jamun, kaljamun and chom-chom. Most of these sweets are milk-based and there are hundreds of varieties across the country.

10. How does Bangladeshi cuisine reflect the culture of the people?

Answer:
Bangladeshi cuisine reflects the culture of the people through its traditional foods, use of spices, and love for fish and sweets. Foods like panta-ilish and pitha are connected with festivals and seasons. Sharing sweets on happy occasions shows social bonding and cultural values of the people.

Passage–1

Bangladeshi cuisine is rich and varied with the use of many (a) ________. Boiled rice is the (b) ________ food of the people. It is served with vegetables, curry, (c) ________, fish and meat. Fish is the main source of (d) ________. Hilsha is very (e) ________ among the people.

Passage–2

Fish is an important part of Bangladeshi food. Nowadays fishes are (a) ________ in ponds. There are many fresh-water fishes in (b) ________ and rivers. More than forty types of fishes are (c) ________ in Bangladesh. Shutki or (d) ________ fish is also popular. Fish provides important (e) ________ to the people.

Passage–3

Panta-Ilish is a (a) ________ Bangladeshi dish. Panta bhat is steamed rice (b) ________ in water. It is served with fried (c) ________ fish. People eat this dish on the occasion of (d) ________ ________. It is also served with pickles and (e) ________ soup.

Passage–4

The people of Bangladesh are very fond of (a) ________. Almost all Bangladeshi women prepare (b) ________ sweets at home. Pitha is a type of sweet made from rice flour, sugar syrup and (c) ________. During winter, (d) ________ Utsab is organized in different places. Sweets are distributed on happy (e) ________.

Passage–5

Most Bangladeshi sweets are (a) ________ based. Some common sweets are roshgulla, sandesh and (b) ________. There are hundreds of different (c) ________ of sweets in Bangladesh. Sweets are an important part of the (d) ________ life of the people. They reflect the (e) ________ and tradition of Bangladesh.